Customer Success Story - Macy Meadows Charolais
Dorothy (Dotty) Macy and her Macy Meadows Charolais operation is located at the head of Chesapeake Bay, five miles south of the Mason and Dixon Line in Maryland, USA.
Starting with three head of cattle in 2004, Macy Meadows has grown to 13 bulls, 59 cows and 31 calves, “According to CattleMax,” Dotty says. Her goal has been to breed to improve the herd and she has done that by using Artificial Insemination, flushing the best show heifer a number of times from different bulls and buying quality cattle. Also using Embryo Transfer and quality semen has helped Dotty reach her goal.
Another factor in the improvement has been the ownership of cattle with partners. “The operation has definitely grown with the established partnerships in Missouri, Minnesota, and New York. Due to the size the herd is divided: weaned heifers are boarded at Hillcrest Farm in Hillsboro, West Virginia; Recip cows and some mature Charolais are boarded at Woodbine Farm in Airville, Pennsylvania; and the calving of bred heifers is my responsibility here at Macy Meadows,” Dotty comments.
Starting with CattleMax 2 in 2004, after seeing an advertisement for the software in the Charolais Journal, Dotty graduated from notes on scraps of paper and an AI chart. She has upgraded her CattleMax each time a new edition was released and now uses CattleMax CS Registered Standard edition for her record keeping.
“When I have time, I like to play ‘what if’ with the projected EPD feature in CattleMax,” Dottie says. She comments that she truly can’t isolate one feature of the program as her favorite, as she continues to learn about the program’s features. “I never was a good record keeper, just notes here and there, but as the herd increased and I discovered CattleMax, that tidied up my record keeping. My tax man loves the print-outs from CattleMax I give him at tax time!”
Dotty’s most used reports: Breeding, EPDs, Calving, Pedigree and Finances.
“If I meet a roadblock in using the program,” Dotty says, “I just call the toll-free CattleMax support number. Someone can always talk you through the problem - then you feel so empowered! I’d certainly recommend that to CattleMax users.”
How has Macy Meadows benefitted from using CattleMax? Dotty comments, “I am retired after 38 years with the Department of Defense, I am old, but I don’t have to worry about getting the facts on my cattle straight. I just look them up in CattleMax, print them out and have a copy of whatever is the immediate need. That works for me!”
